Door

ABSTRACT

A door in which at least two panel members such as glass are supported by a metallic frame having parallel top and bottom rails, parallel strike, and hinge stiles and at least one intermediate vertical stile. Each of the stiles and rails includes opposed parallel surfaces joined by at least one web. The webs each have a glass stop supporting member. The glass stops are elongated members, preferably of extruded aluminum and are supported in parallel spaced relation to each other and form a panel receiving groove about the inside periphery of the rectangular spaces formed by the stiles and rails. A lock is mounted in an intermediate vertical stile and has cam operated rod members that extend, when actuated, through the respective rails for locking the door.

United States Patent 3,6 83 ,5 5 5 Kuniansky 1 Aug. 15, 1972 [54] DOOR Primary Examiner-Kenneth Downey [72] Inventor: Raymond L. Kuniansky, Atlanta, Atmmey Penme' Bdmonds Morton Taylor Ga- Adams [73] Assignee: Anaconda Aluminum Company, [57] ABSTRACT Louisville, Ky. A door in which at least two panel members such as Filed: Jan- 1971 glass are supported by a metallic frame having parallel L N 108 722 top and bottom rails, parallel strike, and hinge stiles [21] o and at least one intermediate vertical stile. Each of the stiles and rails includes opposed parallel surfaces [52] US. Cl. ..49/503 joined by at least one b The webs each have a glass [51] Int. Cl. ..'..E06b 3/? stop supporting member. The glass stops are elongated [58] Field of Search ..49/501, 504, 503, 400, 401, members preferably of extruded aluminum and are 52/403 456 supported in parallel spaced relation to each other and form a panel receiving groove about the inside [56] References and periphery of the rectangular spaces formed by the UNITED STATES PATENTS stiles and rails. A look is mounted in an intermediate vertical stile and has cam operated rod members that 3,299,596 1/ 1967 Neal at a] "49/501 X extend, when actuated, through the respective rails for 3,147,518 9/1964 Horgan, Jr. ..52/455 X locking the door 3,461,182 8/1969 Schacht ..49/394 X 3 Clains, 4 Drawing Figures Patented Aug. 15, 1972 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 WW A\\ v Q) LL -l Q) :n N I m 3 F eel NI E i L N INVENIOR RAYMOND L. KUNIANSKY N 7") N 9'' BY j l a m V N w M ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 15, 1972 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR RAYMOND L. KUN IANSKY 7- Qdank ATTORNEYS noon BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a door and more specifically to doors having at least two panel members, such as glass, supported in an aluminum frame.

Metallic entrances in which a rectangular frame structure supports and retains a rectangular panel such as a glass pane are being widely used in present building construction. Problems involved in providing such a door which is both satisfactory aesthetically and functionally, and yet relatively inexpensive to construct include how to easily assemble and retain together stiles and rails and how to mount the glass panel so that it is retained securely by the frame. For exterior doors the problem of providing strength against forced entrance is a vexing problem particularly when large glass panels are utilized.

It, therefore, is an object of this invention to provide an improved door structure in which at least two panel members such as glass are supported and retained by a metallic frame. 4

It is another object of this invention to provide an improved metallic door structure which provides increased strength against unauthorized intrusion by others. v

It is yet another object of this invention to provide an improved door structure having a pair of opposed parallel rails joined by a hinge and strike stile and having at least one intermediate vertical stile.

SHORT STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, this invention relates to a door having a pair of opposed parallel top and bottom rails and parallel strike and hinge stiles between which is situated at least one vertically disposed intermediate stile. The stiles and rails define an area into which is placed at least two panel members such as, for example, glass. Each of the stiles and rails include opposed parallel side surfaces joined by one or more integrally formed webs. Each web has a panel stop support formed on its face. Elongated glass stop members are supported on the glass stop support in parallel spaced relation to each other to define a panel receiving groove extending about the periphery of the spaces formed by the rails and stiles. A resilient glazing strip is supported by each glass stop to retain and support the panel members in place. A lock having a pair of vertically oriented rods operated by a cam latch is mounted between the webs of the intermediate stile for locking the door against unauthorized entrance. The intermediate vertical stile provides increased support by reducing the size of each panel member and further, permits relatively slim strike stiles since the door handle and locking mechanism are located intermediate the strike stile.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects, features and advantages of this invention will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a door embodied by the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a section view of the door illustrated in FIG. 1 taken along the line 2-2 thereof.

FIG. 3 shows a cutaway perspective view of a portion of a rail utilized in the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows an expanded view of the locking mechanism of the door of this invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Refer now to FIG. 1 which shows a plan view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. A pair of parallel top and bottom rails l 1 and 12, respectively, are shown mounted on a pair of parallel and vertically disposed external stiles l3 and 14. Stile 13 may be termed a strike stile and stile 14 may be termed a hinge stile. Mounted intermediate and parallel with the strike and hinge stiles 13 and 14, respectively, is an intermediate lock supporting stile 15. Intermediate stile 15 is fixedly secured to rails 11 and 12 in any suitable manner. As shown intermediate stile 15 supports a handle 16 for opening and closing the door. An intermediate rail 17 is shown positioned parallel to rails 11 and 12 substantially midway therebetween. Panel members such as, for example, transparent glass panes l8, l9, and 20 are positioned in the spaces defined by the respective stiles and rails. It can be seen and should be understood that the glass panel members are substantially reduced in size by the intermediate stile l5 and rail 17. This provides for substantially greater strength in the door and prevents unauthorized removal of large items through the locked door if the glass panels were broken. Further, the positioning of the handle and the locking mechanism away from the strike stile permits increased ease of opening and closing of the door and at the same time, decreases the possibility of scraped fingers due to the handle being positioned too close to an accompanying door or wall.

Refer now to FIG. 2 which shows a section view of the door of FIG. 1 taken along the lines 2-2 thereof. Strike and hinge stiles l3 and 14, respectively, are shown each having a pair of surfaces 21 and 22 connected by an integrally formed web 23 with each surface having an inwardly directed lip portion 24 forming a channel along the outside wall of the stiles. Since both stiles are mirror images of the other, the foregoing description will be with respect to stile 13. A resilient glazing material 25 is inserted in the channel formed by the lip portions for supporting and retaining a resilient weather strip 26 along the entire length of the stile. The resilient glazing strip 25 has a pair of parallel support members 27 joined by an integrally formed web 28. Inwardly directed lip portions 29 grasp the weather strip 26 thereby providing a secure but resilient support therefor. The glazing strip 25 is retained in the channel formed by means of an arm 30 on each support portion which arms extend outwardly toward the sides 21 and 22 of the stile. Web 23 has a pair of parallel grooves 31 and 32 extending the length of the stile with the outside walls 33 and 34, respectively, being formed diagonally with respect to the outside surfaces 21 and 22 of the stile to provide an overhang. The web 23 also has a pair of parallel L-shaped projections 35 and 36 formed integrally with the web. The top of the L-shaped portions overhang the web 23 to form a pair of channels 37 and 38 that face outwardly toward the outside walls of the stile 13.

In order to support the glass panels, a pair of panel stops 39 and 40 are supported on the face of each web and form parallel slots for receiving and securing the glass panels. Each of the glass stops has a substantially V-shaped cross section and comprise a base portion 41 and an arm portion 42. The base portion 41 of each stop has an oblique heel portion 43 which extends into one of the parallel slots 31 and 32 in the web of the stile such that the outer surface of the heel is secured against movement away from the web by the overhanging outside walls 33 and 34 of the grooves 31 and 32, respectively. Each base portion also includes a toe 42 which is slidable into the channels 37 and 38 formed by the L-shaped projections 35 and 36, respectively. The arms of the glass stops each have a glazing strip retaining groove 44 extending the length of the stile for supporting and retaining a resilient glazing strip 45 having a plurality of fingers 46 for grasping and retaining window panes.

The intermediate stile has a first side 47 having fonned integral therewith a pair of parallel webs 48 and 49 extending the length of the stile. The external portions of the webs are substantially the same as the webs of the strike and hinge stiles and support glass stops in the same manner as previously described. The inside surfaces of the webs 48 and 49 each have a depending portion 50 which extends away from the web toward the center of the stile. Each depending portion has a surface 51 which is substantially parallel to the side 47 and a sloping side 52 facing toward the open side of the stile. A face plate 53 having a pair of inwardly extending arms 54 is positioned parallel to and opposite side 47 such that the ends of the face plate abut against the webs 48 and 49 of the stile. The arms 54 are each terminated in a paw 55 which slides over the sloped wall 52 of the depending portions 50 to grasp the straight edge 51 thereby fixedly securing the face plate to the stile.

Shown in FIG. 3 is a portion of a rail 11 having first and second sides 56 and 57, respectively, separated by an upper and lower web 58 and 59, respectively, to form a rectangular tubular member. The rail as shown has a hole 60 approximately midway between each parallel side through both the upper and lower web. The hole is aligned over the top of intermediate stile 15 to permit a reciprocating locking rod 61 to pass therethrough for locking the door. The bottom stile has a similar structure with a hole through the upper and lower webbing to permit passage therethrough of a second locking rod for locking the door. Each of the rails may be fixedly secured to the respective stiles by techniques well-known in the art and, accordingly, which will not be discussed herein in order to more clearly and concisely describe the invention.

Refer now to FIG. 4 which shows the locking arrangement of the present invention. A lock housing 62 is shown having a hole 63 therethrough for receiving a locking mechanism (not shown). The housing 62 is secured to web 49 of stile 15 by means of a pair of screws 64 (only one is shown) which are inserted through holes 65 and 66 in the lock housing and screwed into tapped holes 67 and 68, respectively, in the web 49. A pair of locking rods 61 and 69 are movable in opposite directions, i.e., rod 61 upward and rod 69 downward. The rods may be moved by any suitable means known in the art, such as a pivotable cam linkage. The hole 63 in the lock housing 62 is aligned with holes 70 and 71 in the stile side 47 and face plate 53 respectively. Thus, a person wishing to access the lock may do so through either side of the intermediate stile. A handle 72 is mounted to the face plate 53 and spaced therefrom by a pair of supports 73. The supports and the handle are secured in place by a pair of screws inserted through face plate 53 into a hole in each support 73, and screwed into the handle 72.

The door may be assembled by rigidly securing stiles 13, 14 and 15 to rails 11 and 12 as shown in FIG. 1. As aforementioned, the rails and stiles may be secured by any suitable technique known in the art. A panel member such as, for example, a glass pane 20 is then placed against the resilient glazing strips 45 supported by glass stop support 40. Then the opposing glass stop 39 having a second resilient strip 45 secured thereto is inserted into the channel 37 formed by the L-shaped portion of the web 35 until the toe portion 31 becomes locked in the overhanging portion 33 of groove 31. The glass 20 is now secured and supported against movement with respect to the frame of the door. The glass panels 18 and 19 are secured with respect to the frame formed by the aforementioned stiles and rails in the same manner as was plate 25.

For disassembly, one of the parallel stop supports is pushed inwardly at its base transversely to the web surface to which it is attached. When the toe portion 33 clears the overhanging edge of the groove 31, the support member is pushed away from the web to disengage the stop support. The glass panel may then be removed from the door.

The weather strip is inserted in place by first folding resilient glazing strip 25 into the channel formed in the stile 13 by lips 24. Once the glazing strip is inserted, the weather strip is pushed inwardly between lips 29.

While this invention has been particularly described and illustrated, it should be understood that the invention is not restricted to the disclosed preferred embodiment. Accordingly, other modifications may be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that come within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.

lclaim:

1. An improved door comprising a frame including parallel top and bottom rails, parallel external stiles, said stiles and rails each having at least one web portion formed integral therewith and means for fixedly securing together said stiles and rails, at least one vertical, intermediate stile mounted on said frame between and parallel to said external stiles, said intermediate stile including a first side member having a pair of parallel webs extending the length thereof and being aligned substantially perpendicularly with respect to said side member, a removable face plate positioned opposite to and parallel with said first side, means for securing said face plate to said webs to form the second side member of a tubular stile structure, means mounted in said intermediate stile for locking said door, said removable face plate permitting access to said locking means, and panel members positioned in the openings defined by said stiles and rails.

2. An improved door according to claim 1 characterized in that said means for locking comprises upper and lower locking rods positioned inside said intermediate stile, said rods being capable of reciprocating resilient glazing strips retainedby each of said stop members, said stop members and said resilient strips fonning a panel receiving groove about the periphery of the openings defined by said frame.

I! i t It i 

1. An improved door comprising a frame including parallel top and bottom rails, parallel external stiles, said stiles and rails each having at least one web portion formed integral therewith and means for fixedly securing together said stiles and rails, at least one vertical, intermediate stile mounted on said frame between and parallel to said external stiles, said intermediate stile including a first side member having a pair of parallel webs extending the length thereof and being aligned substantially perpendicularly with respect to said side member, a removable face plate positioned opposite to and parallel with said first side, means for securing said face plate to said webs to form the second side member of a tubular stile structure, means mounted in said intermediate stile for locking said door, said removable face plate permitting access to said locking means, and panel members positioned in the openings defined by said stiles and rails.
 2. An improved door according to claim 1 characterized in that said means for locking comprises upper and lower locking rods positioned inside said intermediate stile, said rods being capable of reciprocating movement through said top and bottom rails, and means for reciprocating said rods.
 3. An improved door according to claim 2 further comprising, pairs of complementary panel stop members releasably secured to each of said webs, and resilient glazing strips retained by each of said stop members, said stop members and said resilient strips forming a panel receiving groove about the periphery of the openings defined by said frame. 